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Is France Really Spain in Disguise?

Having taken over from Greece, Spain’s economic trauma has had most of the airplay over the past few months. Is it France’s turn next?

The French economy has had a surprisingly easy run — so far. Surprising because, in some respects, it came into the financial crisis in a worse state than Spain’s.

French GDP growth hadn’t been anything to write home about since the introduction of the euro, registering at best a 2.7% full-year expansion and, more often than not, creeping along at under 2%.

Spain, by contrast, was mostly growing at more than 3% on a full-year basis. The Spanish government’s finances were also in a better state. In 2007, Spain’s gross national debt was just 36% of GDP, compared to 64% for France.